Meet Paul LaCamera
The Boston television legend brings more than 30 years of broadcasting experience to his new role as WBUR’s general manager.
LATE LAST FALL, Paul LaCamera became WBUR’s new general manager. A veteran of Boston’s WCVB-TV, he accepted the position to replace acting general manager Peter Fiedler.
For LaCamera, making the switch from television to radio was a bittersweet transition: “While there is a great deal I miss about local television and particularly a station as distinguished as WCVB-TV, I’ve quickly been smitten with WBUR,” says LaCamera. “People have described public radio to me—and specifically WBUR—as a treasure. I think it is that, and more. It contributes in untold ways to an informed, engaged and caring citizenry. With public radio, there is an idealism, a purity, an importance that is unrivaled in any other media.”
The tasks at hand
Once notified that he had been chosen for the position, LaCamera, a Boston native and BU graduate school alumnus, immediately hit the ground running. “I have spent these first months on a steep learning curve—getting to know the staff, learning about NPR, and hopefully contributing to a growth in the station’s fundraising efforts,” he says.
“I have also tried to bring a stronger sense of Boston to the station and its work. There is no questioning the unrivaled reporting done by NPR and WBUR on national and international affairs. But I am eager to see WBUR bring that same level of excellence to our local work, without distracting at all from the national and international programming.”
Positive results and local initiatives
LaCamera describes WBUR as “a preeminent station” not only in the Boston market but among NPR stations nationally. Recent events on both the ratings and awards fronts serve to support that description. The Arbitron for the most recent rating period ranked WBUR number one in the Boston market for the two key listener demographics, ages 25-54 and 35-64. In the overall 12+ ranking, WBUR was number four, a remarkable showing for a public radio station.
In further good news, the Associated Press (AP) has named WBUR the “News Station of the Year,” making this the third year in a row WBUR has taken top honors in New England. WBUR received similar high marks from the Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA), taking the top prizes for “General Excellence” and “Regional Website.” All told, WBUR won three other AP Awards and five from RTNDA.
“The ratings and awards speak volumes of the journalists, hosts, producers and other professionals at WBUR,” says La Camera. “It is a station with a distinguished legacy and a future that holds no limit in what we hope to achieve.”
LaCamera is particularly enthusiastic about the opportunity to create more programming that connects with the station’s local audience: “We are beefing up our local reporting staff, particularly in the areas of health and science, business and finances, arts and culture, and the old-fashioned world of political reporting. For example, there is an important Massachusetts gubernatorial election coming up this fall, and we are committed to having WBUR make an important contribution to that process.”
He continues, “I suppose, in the end, I am eager to see WBUR play more of a leadership role in the Greater Boston region. We also want to be part of the work of our parent institution, Boston University, in contributing meaningfully to the life and welfare of the larger Boston community.”
A new addition
LaCamera has set his sights on creating an entirely new WBUR program that tackles local issues of great importance: “We should all take great pride in that four NPR programs originate at WBUR—On Point, Here and Now, Only A Game and, of course, Car Talk.”
“But I would like us to have a fifth player to add to that group —a local program that may very well be a weekly airing on the weekend. A program that can provide intelligent and compelling access to local issues in the same way On Point and Here and Now provide expression to national matters.“
La Camera has also taken the opportunity to announce the return of WBUR’s radio documentaries. The first, a look at the Boston Medical Center on the 10th anniversary of the merger between the historic Boston City Hospital and Boston University Hospital, aired this June.
The station’s Inside Out documentary series will return this fall with a report on the widening gap between rich and poor Americans. These documentaries, as well as all of WBUR’s programming, will be available for listening on wbur.org, for download by podcast, and on XM Satellite Radio.
Finding the right balance
While LaCamera’s sees encouraging signs concerning the growing popularity of the station’s programming through new media, he also wants to emphasize that WBUR will continue to grow its market share through terrestrial radio.
“Satellite radio, web streaming, podcasting—all exciting technologies and opportunities of the future, if not the present. As we look to the new technologies, they do give us exciting platforms to spread the good word and works of WBUR to national and international audiences.”
He continues: “However, I try to emphasize to our staff and supporters that there is still a lot of life left in our current model of over-the-air broadcasting. Are we going to be major players in the new platforms? Yes. But we will not neglect how we are serving our audience today.”
Looking ahead
LaCamera is a man dedicated to his craft, but this broadcasting veteran knows the value of a solid staff: “One can only be struck by the extraordinary staff of WBUR,” says LaCamera. “They are smart, dedicated, mission-driven. When you see them in action, you can understand why public radio is as good as it is.”
His mission for WBUR is simple. His goal is direct.
“WBUR has been a great public radio station for a long time,” he says. “The challenge is to take it to new heights, both locally and nationally, and to contribute meaningfully to the life and welfare of this wonderful city we serve in any way we can. The staff and I strive every day to achieve those goals, however lofty they may be.”